This application is based upon and claims priority of a Japanese Patent Application No. 09-308877 filed Nov. 11, 1997, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and process for printing figures related to such objects as job flowcharts, and, more particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for displaying and printing figures related to job flowcharts used in the operations management of computer jobs.
2. Description of the Related Art
In managing the operations of computer jobs, job flowcharts are normally created to show the order of the jobs to be processed and their relationship to the preceding jobs in accordance with predetermined operating and management information. These flowcharts are then shown on a display. An operating manager can look at the displayed job flow and confirm that no errors exist in the created operations management program.
Recently, business systems have become extremely large and the number of jobs that must be shown on a job flowchart has become too many to display in a single picture plane. The operations manager must therefore scroll the picture plane to view those parts which cannot be shown in a single picture plane.
If a job flowchart consists of only two sheets or pages, they can both be displayed on a picture plane. However, if there are many sheets or pages, they should be printed on paper to view the relationships for all job elements in the entire job flow. However, if the job flowchart is printed on paper, an abundance of information involved in the job flowchart can cause it to extend over multiple sheets.
In the prior art, because the data to be shown in the picture plane is printed as it was on the paper, the figures (squares) showing the jobs are spread over multiple sheets, as shown in FIG. 16(A). Also, though the figures (squares) were printed accurately as in FIG. 16(B), one crossing point (linkage) between a job and a line showing a relationship to another job was not printed. Without such a linkage being shown the number of related jobs is unknown. Hence, since the printing of this job flowchart is over multiple pages, important information is missing and the printed job flowchart is in a less understandable form.
In addition, when a job flowchart is printed on paper, because a rectangular area including the entire job flow was printed, the printed job flowchart does not have figures showing the job or lines showing a relationship with other jobs.
Also, if multiple printed sheets are pieced together into one sheet after printing, the entire job flow can be seen, but this involves confirming each relationship among jobs of the output job flow.
Still further, lines that show a relationship with another job use arrows to indicate job hierarchy. However, when piecing together multiple sheets, it is difficult to distinguish between multiple lines with arrows and those without arrows when they are positioned at the same point.
To summarize, several problems are encountered in the prior art. First, when printing a job flowchart over several pages, the printed job flowchart does not have figures showing the job or lines showing a relationship with other jobs. Second, when multiple printed sheets are pieced together into one sheet after printing, a person must confirm each relationship among jobs of the output job flow. Finally, when piecing together multiple pages of a job workflow, it is difficult to distinguish between multiple lines with arrows and those without arrows when they are positioned at the same point.
An object of the present invention is to provide a relational figure print control processing apparatus so that when printing the related object figures of the job flow on multiple sheets, the relationships between the objects will be output to users in an easily understandable manner. This entails not printing job flowcharts that do not have figures showing the objects as jobs or not having lines showing the relationships with other objects.
It is also an object of the present to print a job flowchart on several sheets that can be easily combined into one sheet. To accomplish this easy combining of multiple sheets, lines indicating relationships with other objects are output in a manner in which job hierarchy is easily distinguishable.
Objects and advantages of the present invention are achieved in accordance with embodiments of the present invention by a relational figure print control processing apparatus which controls printing of a plurality of relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets. These relational figures have a first kind of figure representing an object and a second kind of line figure representing a relationship among several objects. This relational figure control apparatus comprises a predetermining object position unit to determine object position information of a plurality of the first kind of figures so that the first kind of figure is located within a single printing sheet and a connection portion between the first kind of figure and the second kind of line figure is located within the single printing sheet. The relational figure print control processing apparatus also includes a predetermining link line position unit to determine link line position information based on whether a first end of the second kind of line figure is positioned at the corner of the first kind of figure based upon whether another object linked by a second end of the second kind of line figure is higher or lower than the first end of the second kind of figure. A predetermining printing size unit is used to determine a size of a first figure area based upon the size of a single printing sheet and a size of the first kind of figure, and a predetermining printing page unit is used to determine a plurality of print pages based on the object position information, the link line position information, and the size of the first figure area for a two dimensional printing area for each of the plurality of printing sheets.
Further objects and advantages of the present invention are achieved in accordance with embodiments of the present invention by a relational figure print control processing apparatus which controls printing of a plurality of relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets. These relational figures have a first kind of figure representing an object and a second kind of line figure representing a relationship among several objects. This relational figure control apparatus comprises a predetermining object position unit to determine object position information of a plurality of the first kind of figures so that the first kind of figure is located within a single printing sheet and a connection portion between the first kind of figure and the second kind of line figure is located within the single printing sheet. The relational figure print control processing apparatus also includes a predetermining link line position unit to determine link line position information based on whether a first end of the second kind of line figure is positioned at the corner of the first kind of figure based upon whether another object linked by a second end of the second kind of line figure is higher or lower than the first end of the second kind of figure. A predetermining printing page unit is used to determine a plurality of print pages based on the object position information and the link line position information for a two dimensional printing area for each of the plurality of printing sheets.
Further objects of the present invention are achieved by a relational figure print control processing apparatus controlling printing of numerous relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets, where the relational figures include a first kind of figure representing an object and a second kind of line figure representing a relationship among several objects. This relational figure print control processing apparatus comprises a predetermining object position unit to determine positions of a plurality of the first kind of figures so that the first kind of figure is located within a single printing sheet and a connection portion between the first kind of figure and the second kind of line figure is located within the single printing sheet.
In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, the predetermining object position unit determines the position of the first kind of figure, so that the first kind of figure is positioned within a first figure area of the single printing sheet, the first figure area is calculated by deducting size of the first kind of figure from an edge of a printable area of the single printing sheet.
In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, the relational figure print control processing apparatus also includes a setting means for storing a size of the single printing sheet, and a predetermining printing size unit to determine a size of the first figure area based upon the size of the single printing sheet and the size of the first kind of figure.
In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, the relational figure print control processing apparatus also includes a setting means for storing a size of the first kind of figure, and a predetermining printing size unit to determine the size of the first figure area based upon the size of the single printing sheet and the size of the first kind of figure.
Still further objects of the present invention are achieved by a relational figure print control processing apparatus, to control printing of a plurality of relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets. The relational figures include a first kind of figure representing an object and a second kind of line figure representing relationship among a plurality of objects. The relational figure print control processing apparatus includes a predetermining printing page unit to determine a plurality of print pages having printing information, by managing printing information for a two dimensional printing area for each print page, wherein the two dimensional printing area is composed of a plurality of print sheets, and each print page corresponds to each print sheet.
In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, the relational figure print control processing apparatus also includes a printing unit to print all of the print pages determined by the predetermining printing page unit having the relational figures.
Still further objects of the present invention are achieved by a relational figure print control processing apparatus, to control printing of a plurality of relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets. The relational figures include a first kind of figure representing an object and a second kind of line figure representing a relationship among a plurality of objects. The relational figure print control processing apparatus includes a printing unit to print a two dimensional position of print page, by managing printing information for a two dimensional printing area of each print page, wherein the two dimensional printing area is composed of a plurality of print sheets, and each print page corresponds to each print sheet having the relational figures.
Still further objects of the present invention are achieved by a relational figure print control processing apparatus to control printing of a plurality of relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets. The plurality of relational figures includes a first kind of figure representing an object and a second kind of line figure representing hierarchy relationship between two objects, wherein the first kind of figure has a corner. The relational figure print control processing apparatus has a predetermining link line position unit to determine whether a first end of the second kind of line figure is positioned at the corner of the first kind of figure based upon whether another object linked by a second end of the second kind of line figure is higher or lower than the first end of the second kind of line figure.
The embodiments of the present invention as described above can alternatively be implemented using a computer program embodied on a computer-readable storage media to control printing of a plurality of relational figures over a plurality of printing sheets by directing a computer.